


Display: Reprise

by ashes0909



Series: Held [49]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Commands and Orders, Feelings, Light Dom/sub, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-25
Updated: 2017-11-25
Packaged: 2019-02-06 11:54:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12816966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ashes0909/pseuds/ashes0909
Summary: “This today’s front page?” Steve’s voice was grave, his arm coming around to circle Tony’s waist, and suddenly, Tony was very much awake.





	Display: Reprise

The sun had been up for hours, and Tony for even longer. The warm coffee mug someone had placed between his hands and Steve’s laughter next to him were all that tethered him to consciousness. He needed a bed, and soon, but Steve would be called away to SHIELD any minute, and he wanted to make use of the time they had together.

The cause of Steve’s laughter was probably Clint, because Nat was not the one juggling pastries. That, at least, had penetrated his exhaustion.

Steve’s attention turned towards the elevator doors, and Tony only noticed because the movement jostled his head where it rested on Steve’s shoulder. There were greetings exchanged, words more terse than usual but Tony was too tired to dwell on it. After a moment, Bruce’s familiar hand entered his line of vision, dropping a newspaper on the counter in front of them. A thud, and silence followed.

Under his cheek, Steve tensed, and Tony sat up to see Clint’s narrowed eyes glaring, Nat’s face blank, and Bruce’s eyes tinted with concern.

“This today’s front page?” Steve’s voice was grave, his arm coming around to circle Tony’s waist, and suddenly, Tony was very much awake. On the cover was a photo of the two of them. The same shot could’ve been taken at countless restaurants, but instead it was taken at their favorite Italian place and didn’t that just add extra salt to the wound?

It wasn’t taken by anyone inside the restaurant, but by paparazzi from outside, getting the perfect, private, moment of Steve blushing as Tony lifted Steve’s hand to press a kiss against his knuckles. The headline was in bold letters, _Iron Man and Captain America: More Than Just Teammates?_

His stomach dropped. Tony was used to having every aspect of his life paraded around, but by now it was little more than a minor annoyance for him, and a source of regular potential heart attacks for his PR manager. For Steve though… He looked up and saw Steve’s face turn beet red. They hadn’t been a secret. They never tried to keep the romantic aspect of their relationship private. It had only been a matter of time; even if they never made a public statement. Tony had thought about a press release before, but things had been so peaceful and really, it wasn’t anyone else’s fucking business. The only people affected were him and Steve and their team, no one else. But there was no way Steve wouldn’t be affected by this, to be splashed across the headlines, for their private life to be used as other people’s entertainment news. And now he was tied to Tony, to his string of liaisons, to his past mistakes and future mishaps. Would the world see Steve as just another fling? How would Steve react if they inevitably did?

His lethargic morning was taking a turn with every uncomfortable shift Steve made next to him. “Stupid paparazzi.” Tony wanted to clench his fist in the newspaper. “Aliens are falling from the sky, Hydra is having a twenty-first century resurgence, and these clowns spend their time taking grainy, half-blurred, stalker photos of Steve and me at Osteria Al Volo. They even got Steve’s breadsticks in the shot. Steve loves those breadsticks.”

“Tony,” Steve cut in, the color in his cheeks probably sheepishness now, more than anger.

Clint snorted. “I don’t want to know what that’s all about.” He waved his hand over the photographed breadsticks. “Just tell me which journalist to tail.”

Steve shook his head, even as Tony took a picture of the name with his phone and messaged it to Clint. Nat came over from her spot by the coffee maker to take in the photo, eyes narrowing for a moment, then she shrugged. “It wasn’t much of a secret and absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. Nice to see you in the press with your clothes on, Tony.”

Before he could reply with a suitably genius quip, Steve’s phone rang. Tony’s breath caught, was someone calling Steve about the newspaper? A surge of adrenaline followed as Tony met Steve’s gaze. He’d slipped into Captain mode, listening to the person on the other end of the line. Steve’s brow creased, and Tony wondered if the other person was berating him about the article. But then Steve mouthed, “What’s wrong?” at Tony, and he realized that the phone call had nothing to do with the news.

He shook his head and rested back against Steve’s side while he listened to his side of the call. He searched for any underlying embarrassment or anger about the article breaking through his clear, strong voice. Steve valued his privacy and had a much higher expectation of it than Tony. He wanted to do what he could to reassure the man so he leaned up to his ear, where only Steve could hear, to answer his question. “Nothing’s wrong, if you’re okay.” He was close enough to bite playfully at Steve’s ear, even as their teammates groaned. It was worth it for the way Steve smirked and stuttered his reply on the phone.

When the call eventually ended, Tony knew by the way Steve took a deep breath and straightened his shoulders that it was time for him to leave for the day. The article seemed forgotten for the moment.

Steve insisted on escorting Tony the penthouse, even though he had zero intention of returning to the workshop. In their bedroom, Tony let him pull back their sheets, even fluff Tony’s pillow, before stepping back so Tony could slide into their bed. Before Steve pulled away, Tony encircled his wrist and pulled him in for a searing kiss. He may have mumbled the word, “mine,” once or twice, but he was asleep before he heard Steve leave the room.

When he woke up, he was alone in their apartment, and he wandered idly to the kitchen for some coffee. He stopped short in the doorway because someone had delivered a different newspaper, with the same “breaking news,” to the penthouse. It sat on the coffee table like a beacon with the headline: _Tony Stark’s Latest Conquest: America._

It was accompanied by a photo from Halloween - Steve leaning in to tilt Tony’s costume-crown on his head. His mind scanned his memory of the party, trying to remember any unfamiliar face wearing that familiar expression of dark greed. He’d been too distracted by the party, by Steve, by the false sense of security that no one would sell a photo they took in his own home.

He wrapped his robe tighter around his waist and came around the couch, throwing himself onto the cushions and running a hand through his hair. There were probably more photos inside the pages, he imagined a full page spread. Probably taking bets on how quickly Tony could fuck this up. The best relationship he’d ever had, and no celebrity “journalist” would bet on him to make it last.

Steve was probably finishing up at SHIELD, another long shift of rooting out Hydra operatives from its ranks. He wondered if anyone was giving him a hard time. At least Rumlow and his goons were in the wind, but he could still see Agent Gardner siddle up to him with an obnoxious comment. Coulson was probably blushing at him nonstop from the start of his day to the end of it. Tony groaned and wished JARVIS was equipped to bring him coffee.

He let his body tilt onto the couch so he was laying on his side. Steve’s newspaper-print face was staring at him, grinning. When he closed his eyes the smile turned uncertain, Steve biting his lip, brow furrowed. Unsure, unsettled.

The elevator door chimed, but he didn’t want to open his eyes. He knew it was Steve and he knew the man could’ve spent the whole day trying to find ways to tell Tony that this was all too much, too open, that they were too much on display.

He heard whistling, happy humming, and then a hand reached over the back of the couch to tussle his hair. Tony tensed, then peeked open an eye. Steve was smiling.

“Hey honey, I’m home.” Steve sang, a teasing glint in his eye. Tony tentatively lifted from the couch.

“You’re...happy?”

“Yes.” Steve’s smile faltered for a moment. “It’s been a good day.”

“It has?”

“Yes…?”

Tony gestured at the newspaper. “You sure?”

“Tony, what’s going on?” Steve asked from the other side of the couch. “I thought you were fine with the article. I thought--”

“I am!” Tony sat up, shaking off his sleep and walking around to wrap his arms around Steve’s waist. “I thought maybe, at SHIELD or on the street that people would…”

“That people would what? Know? Say something? I’m happy everyone knows! Three people asked me how you were doing, and wished us good luck.” Steve’s eyes were wide with excitement, his words coming out in a rush. “Now people know who we are to one another, how much you mean to me. It’s, well, if I could scream from the rooftops that I was yours, I would.”

Tony felt his cheeks flush, imagining Steve wearing his collar as he shouted those words. “Well technically you can. We have a rooftop, one you are intimately familiar with.” Steve’s eyes darkened, and his gaze dropped to Tony’s mouth.

Tony felt everything slide into place, fears swept away at the sight of Steve’s eagerness. He ran a hand up his chest, still clad in his SHIELD uniform, tight and black and calling for Tony to rip it off. “I have a better idea than the rooftop, though.” He turned Steve around so that he faced the floor to ceiling windows, and walked them so that they could see the city alive below. Blood rushed through Tony’s veins, because he’d always wanted to do this, show Steve off for the world to see.

Standing behind him, Tony slid his hands over his chest, up and down his back to land on the zipper of his SHIELD tac suit. He lowered it down bit by bit until Steve was standing in front of the window shirtless, then he pushed it over his hips. “No underwear?” Tony teased.

“No-- You know there’s not enough room.” Steve swallowed.

“And I love it every time.” Tony bent down to the ground, pulling one foot out of the suit and then the other, until he sat back on his heels and looked up his naked body, Steve’s flush had overtaken his neck, falling over his shoulders and chest. Tony rose as he traced his hands up Steve’s calves, hips, waist, before resting proprietarily over his chest. “Now everyone can see,” Tony whispered in his ear. “Everyone can see that you’re mine. Everyone knows, everyone in the world, that you belong in my bed, by my side, kneeling by my heel.” Steve gasped and rolled his head onto Tony’s shoulder. Tony pressed his lips against his ear. “Kneel.”

Steve fell to his knees still facing the window. His head falling to the side and resting on Tony’s hip. “Good boy.” He took a moment to run his hands through the strands of Steve’s soft hair, then he pushed down his sweatpants and traced the head of his cock over Steve’s lips. “Now, show the world how good you are.”

**Author's Note:**

> Next one's the big 5-0 and we can't wait to take you on an adventure! ;)
> 
> As always, please feel free to come visit us on tumbly: [ashes0909](http://ashes0909.tumblr.com) and [FestiveFerret](http://festiveferret.tumblr.com)


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